“I’ve had large families of cats. Among them many memorable personalities. I’ve been greatly attached to perhaps a dozen cats in the last twenty years, but of all my cats, there has never been a cat like my first Siamese, Charles O’ Malley.”
The words of writer, journalist, and publisher, Michael Joseph
Charles, The Story of a Friendship is beautifully written in a style we don’t see much today. The English is educated and proper, British by nature—genteel.
Author and editor, Michael Joseph wanted a Siamese cat. In 1930, London, Siamese cats were quite rare. He located a breeder, found his kitten, named him Charles O’Malley, and together they had a life of adventure.
This episode picks up in Chapter 2, page 18. Mr. Joseph is discussing how true cat lovers name their cats. They don’t give them simple names like Puss, or Fluffy. This is a perfect chapter to begin to understand the meticulousness of this well written book.
There are so many touching scenes between Mr. Joseph and Charles, that I assure you dear reader this is not the only episode on the book Charles, The Story of a Friendship.
This book would be appreciated by anyone whom has ever had a deep relationship with a cat.
Book Details
- Title: Charles, The Story of a Friendship
- Author: Michael Joseph
- Date Published: October 1952-First Printing, March 1953-Second Printing
- Publisher: Prentice-Hall, New York
I would search for this book on AbeBooks
The main reason I recommend Abe Books for this collection is because almost all of these books are British, and Abe does a great service of connecting customers with British book retailers.
Now I want to take a moment to talk about Michael Joseph (1897-1958). First, my heart was captured as I read Charles. In research for Cat Literature, Mr. Joseph’s name kept recurring. He was the editor and publisher of Best Cat Stories. Which I have, and you will be hearing episodes from this collection. He was also the editor publisher for Derek Tangye, whose books, The Minack Chronicles I adore, as they paint a visual picture of life in the English countryside, and of course there are cats.
“Some of the many famous authors that Michael Joseph befriended and encouraged are Michael Arlen, Stacy Aumonier, H. E. Bates, Monica Dickens, Paul Galico, Daphne du Maurier, C. S. Forester and Richard Llewelyn. Later authors include Miss Read (Dora Saint), Dick Francis (who rode for him) and the late Duchess of Windsor, whose biography title he acquired, against stiff opposition, as a result of his earlier meetings with Edward VIII. The list is endless with the result that today many authors owe their fame to his efforts.” From the book jacket of Michael Joseph, Master of Words by his son, Richard Joseph.
Book Details
- Title: Michael Joseph, Master of Words
- Author: Richard Joseph, his son.
- Date Published: 1986
- Publisher: Ashford Press Publishing, Southampton
Featured Cat
The “Meows and Purrs” for this episode were voiced by Cat Prince William, a nine-year-old Siamese rag doll living in Dallas, Texas. Rumor has it, that he is a well known catnip connoisseur.
I hope you enjoy The Literary Catcast. I would love to hear from you. I never plan to have sponsors—this is a work of love. I have no set schedule to release episodes, because as I mentioned the reading is very time intensive, so please subscribe to stay tuned, and tap the 5-stars if you listen on Apple Podcasts.
Cheers to cats, hot tea, excellent writers, and good story telling. Thanks for listening.
I’m intrigued by this book…always loved Siamese…never have had the opportunity to own one.
Hi Susan,
I got my copy at ABE Books. They’re an online consolidator of booksellers around the world. Charles is a terrific book to have in your library.
With friendship,
Phebe